Ice dam risk in Marysville, WA
How often ice dams form in Marysville
0.4 dam days a winter
Almost never. An ordinary house in Marysville sees 0.4 days a winter when an ice dam can form, because snow rarely stays on a roof long enough below freezing.
Marysville averages 4 inches of snow a year and about 3 days with snow on the ground. Too little lies on the roof for long. The conditions that make a dam need all three at once: snow, cold at the eave and heat above it.
Do you need to do anything in Marysville?
- Nothing for ice dams. If you are buying here and an inspector mentions water at the eaves, ask what they saw: it is far more likely a gutter, flashing or drip-edge problem than ice.
Snowy places are not always the worst: why snowfall misleads.
Marysville winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| February | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
| March | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| November | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| December | 2.2 | 1.5 | 0.2 |
Marysville next to nearby towns
Marysville ranks 25 of 91 Washington cities here for ice-dam days, behind Spokane at 13.0 days.
- Lake Stevens, WA 6 mi, 0.3 days
- Arlington, WA 6 mi, 0.4 days
- Everett, WA 8 mi, 0.3 days
- Snohomish, WA 11 mi, 0.3 days
- Mukilteo, WA 13 mi, 0.3 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Arlington, 8.4 miles from Marysville. A dam day is a day with snow on the roof and freezing at the eave while heat or sun melts the snow above it. This describes a normal winter, not this one.